The 34-28 defeat to Treviso early in September 2010 now seems like a distant memory for the Scarlets, and it was results like those that have ended up costing the Scarlets a play off spot in the Magners League as they finished in 5th place, one point behind the Ospreys.
The Welsh side ended the opening month of their season with three consecutive wins over Connacht, Aironi and Newport Gwent Dragons. Added to that was the emergence of winger George North, who scored two tries in the defeat to Treviso. So after being beaten on the opening day, the Scarlets soon built some momentum and the season looked like being a successful one for Nigel Davies' men.
As the season moved into October, the Scarlets welcomed their local rivals the Ospreys to Parc y Scarlets, however, in front of what was Llanelli's highest attendance of the season, 13,707, the Scarlets were defeated 18-21 by a clinical Ospreys side.
Later on in the month, a run of four wins, one of which was a 10-16 win away to Cardiff Blues, saw the Scarlets climb back up the Magners League table but that impressive run was brought to an end by Munster, the eventual winners league, as they were defeated 27-26 at Thomond Park.
The Scarlets looked set to end 2010 strongly as they secured a 17-17 draw against play off hopefuls Leinster and they also added a couple of wins against Italian side Treviso. However, it was the Ospreys who came back to haunt Nigel Davies' side in their final game of 2010 as they were comprehensively beaten 60-17 and conceded seven tries in the process.
The first half of their season then, had ensured that the Scarlets had a strong enough platform upon which they could challenge the teams at the higher end of the Magners League table and they carried their good form into the new year with a 21-15 win over the Dragons, 16 points of which were scored by the in-form Rhys Priestland. A 16-21 win at Edinburgh seven days later left the fans in good spirit, however, their next match was to be the beginning of the Scarlets' downfall. An 18-32 home defeat at the hands of Leicester Tigers triggered a winless streak of 6 games for the Scarlets which severely dented their ambitions of finishing in the play offs.
The Scarlets' fortunes were epitomised in the final minute of their home match against Ulster in February. With the Scarlets playing out the final moments of the game as they headed to victory, Ben Morgan was penalised by referee Andy MacPherson for not binding. The resulting penalty kick, from inside the Ulster half, was superbly executed by South African Ruan Pienaar to ensure that Brian McLaughlin's side secured the points with the final kick of the game - Scarlets 16 - 18 Ulster. February ended brightly as the Welsh side beat Edinburgh 11-3 at Parc y Scarlets thanks to a try from George North, who had just made his comeback from the injury he suffered on international duty with Wales.
The 2011 Six Nations tournament finished on the 19th of March, meaning the Scarlets only had two fixtures that month. The first was a 26-15 defeat away to Leinster but the second was a 22-16 home victory against Treviso.
The Scarlets entered April knowing that they would need to produce a good run of results if they were to secure a play off place but after being beaten by Irish side Ulster for the second time this year in a 20-18 defeat - Ulster 20 - 18 Scarlets, and after suffering a 6-13 home loss at the hands of Munster, the play offs looked out of reach. The month finished on a positive note for the Scarlets as they won 29-37 away to Glasgow Warriors, a result that secured the Scarlets' place in next year's Heineken Cup.
The final game of the Scarlets' season was at home to the Cardiff Blues, a side that were also chasing a play off place. The Scarlets' hopes of making the play offs was out of their hands as they needed Aironi to beat the Ospreys and hope that they could triumph over the Blues. The Scarlets did what they could to finish in the top four as they beat the Blues 38-23 in what was a thrilling match. Unfortunately for the Scarlets, a late James Hook penalty saw the Ospreys come from behind to win 12-10 in Aironi. Scarlets 38 - 23 Blues
So the Scarlets finished in 5th place in the Magners League table only a point behind the Ospreys in what was a season that will be looked back at as 'if only'. However, after a disappointing season in 2009/10 where they finished second from bottom in the Magners League table, the Scarlets certainly took a huge step in the right direction as they aim to build a strong side for next season.
